ACLU calls for monitoring MCSO after racial profiling decision

Last Friday a federal judge ruled the Maricopa County
Sheriff’s Office engaged in racial profiling against Latinos. The court ordered
the sheriff’s department stop those practices. Attorneys for the plaintiffs indicate
they will ask the court to appoint a monitor to make sure the sheriff’s office complies.
That is something Sheriff Joe Arpaio resisted in the past.

Attorneys for the Maricopa County
Sheriff’s Office and plaintiffs will meet in federal court on June 14. That is
when U.S. District Judge Murray Snow will decide how the MCSO will carry out
his orders.

American Civil Liberties Union’s Cecilia Wang litigated the case with other attorneys on
behalf of the Latino plaintiffs. She said typical monitoring measures could include
training for sheriff’s deputies and data collection on the MCSO’s traffic stops.

"That will make sure that everybody in the
community, the federal court and the sheriff’s office personnel themselves,
will be able to see out in the open what this law enforcement agency is doing
and everyone in community can make sure to hold them accountable through the
federal court system," Wang said.

Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s attorney said the MCSO is
prepared to comply with the letter and spirit of the order but plans to appeal
the decision.

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